Hong Kong Housing Society plans to seek bank loan of at least HK$1 billion, sell some assets to tackle cash-flow issues in coming years
- Hong Kong Housing Society chairman Walter Chan says bank loan is the easiest and most direct way to raise capital
- City’s second-largest public housing provider has faced challenges in recent years, with its net deficit increasing 43 per cent in 2022-23
Hong Kong’s second-largest public housing provider is planning to borrow at least HK$1 billion through a bank loan and sell some of its non-major property assets by the end of 2024 to address cash-flow deficits in the coming years.
Hong Kong Housing Society chairman Walter Chan Kar-lok on Tuesday stopped short of revealing the exact amount of money needed but noted the figure could be “calculated in terms of HK$1 billion”.
“We have made initial contact with many banks about the syndicated loan arrangement. Their responses have been positive. We expect there will be a resolution this year,” Chan said.
He said a bank loan was the simplest and most direct way to raise capital, and the society did not plan to issue bonds or borrow money from the public coffers.
Chan added that the government would upgrade the self-financing organisation’s status to “public sector entity” in April, enabling it to enjoy beneficial loan interest rates and terms equivalent to official departments.